Which is the diamond?

[magglass1]

Hi everyone, I recently got around to looking for a diamond I have. It is in a bag but mixed with other crystals and such. I know it is clear, so I can eliminate any colored crystals, but how do I differentiate between it and the crystal? Any help is appretiated. Thanks!

-Mark

 

[oldminer]

If you had jewelry test equipment you could tell right away between weighing each stone and determining which is the right one with the specific gravity of diamond by measuring each and backing throough the weight estimation formula.

You could probably detect the correct one with a thermal probe as diamond has very rapid heat absorption.

If you use a loupe you might be able to tell from how the girdle looks. Diamond is rather unique in appearance ont eh girdle, sometimes. You may be able to tell by how clean and precise the facet junctions are all over the stone, too.

You could see which ones scratch glass and which don't, but that only gets you part way.

I think you probably can't tell without some expertise by just looking. It was a good question to pose.

 

[valeria101]

Let me get this right... a little rough diamond got lost in a bag of rocks !!!!

 

[magglass1]

LOL, not quite. These are all cut. The crystals are from Swarovski.

Is there a way to tell the difference by how it refracts light? I think you can do that with a diamond vs a CZ, right? I just need to know some major differences between crystal and diamond.

Thanks for the help!

 

[Rhino]

Try this ....

• Make a dot on a piece of blank white paper.
  
• When you place the crystal face down and centered on the dot.
  
• When you view the crystal perpendicular to the culet (looking straight down on top of the stone) you should be able to clearly observe a dark circular ring in the pavilion which is a reflection of that dot around and in the pavilion.
  
• When you place a cut diamond in the same position, centered on the dot, you will not be able to see the dot because the diamond crystal breaks up and refracts the reflection of that dot.

Not at my store otherwise I'd photograph this for ya. Let me know what you observe.

 

[magglass1]

Well I was looking through all the crystals and diamond last night and found one that had a different cut from the rest. But it does look like it is chipped a little on the edges (the diamond isn't new). I did the test with the dot on the paper and for both that and one with a different cut and I could see the dark ring. Is this dependant on the cut or properties of crystal/diamond?

Thanks again for the help!

 

[strmrdr]

have you seen this thread?
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/visual-optics-special-weapons-tactics-for-guerilla-gemology.10635/

 

[pyramid]

I am just a consumer. I am in the UK and crystals here are cut differently than diamonds usually. I do not know if it is the same in the USA.

Here a diamond has kite facets, on the top (crown) of the diamond, shaped like a kite whereas crystals have sort of square facets going around the top of the stone. You can see the facets by reflecting light on the surface of the stone (if you did not already know that) and use a magnifying glass to make it easier unless the diamond/crystals are fairly large.

 

[magglass1]

Yes, but the one that I have singled out has neither of those cuts. The crystals are, however, cut as you described. The cut I have has triangle cuts (alternating pointing up and down) around the crown. The base (or whatever the technical name is) has what looks like triangles pointing down from the edge and then forms kites which come together at the bottom tip. I've tried looking up cut patterns online but have not yet found one similar to this.

Thanks for the help!

 

[pyramid]

www.topazery.com/antique-diamonds.htm



On the above link there are diagrams of old diamond cuts. The rose cut seems to have triangle patterns but the top of the diamond comes to a point. I do not know if crystals or cubic zirconia are cut like this also.

 

[pyramid]

----------------
On 5/9/2004 12:36:40 PM magglass1 wrote:

Well I was looking through all the crystals and diamond last night and found one that had a different cut from the rest. But it does look like it is chipped a little on the edges (the diamond isn't new). I did the test with the dot on the paper and for both that and one with a different cut and I could see the dark ring. Is this dependant on the cut or properties of crystal/diamond?

Thanks again for the help!----------------

What Rhino is saying is that if it is diamond you will not see the dark ring but if it is crystal you will.

I think it is dependent upon the refractive properties of diamond as opposed to crystal.

 

[magglass1]

I'll upload some photos later and you can see how it is cut.

In the mean time, I'll try out that test with the dot on some of the other crystals.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

There's two quick ways you can seperate a diamond from Swarovski crystal.

Swarovski crystal is leaded glass with a much higher dispersion and much lower refractive index than diamond.

This gives you two comparison tests you can use:

1) Put all the clear crystals in water. The Swarovski crystals will be much more transparent and "washed out" in appearance than the diamond.

2) Put all the clear crystals in a clear glass pan of some sort, covered with water. Hold the pan a couple inches over a white sheet of paper. Darken the room and shine a flashlight over the crystals.

The Swarovski crystals will all exhibit the same pattern of dispersion, while the diamond's will be different.

The Swarovski's will exhibit more dispersion in the form of longer individual spectral (straight rainbow colored patterns) patterns, while the diamond's will be shorter.

It also helps if you use a known diamond as a master comparison stone in these seperations.

 

[valeria101]

Can you borrow a diamond tester ?!